Articles by Herschel Smith

Writer Nick Harvey (from Australia) addresses a question from a reader.

Q: For years Marlin promoted Micro-Groove rifling as enhancing the accuracy of their rifles. If this is true, why don’t they use it on their big-bore rifles in .444 and .45-70? This has got me wondering if Micro-Groove rifling isn’t just another sales gimmick.

– Dave Edwards

A: Over the years I’ve tested quite a few Marlin rifles which had Micro-Groove rifling and found them to be very accurate.

For a while it was used on big-bore rifles, but then a problem reared its ugly head: the fine rifling does not work well with lead bullets unless you are super careful when reloading with regard to the alloys and velocities you are using.

Many handloaders found that when using lead bullets, especially at higher velocities, Micro-Groove barrels leaded up badly.

Marlin got so many complaints about this that they went back to ‘regular’ rifling, which Marlin calls Ballard-type. I believe the .30-30 and .35 Remington still had Micro-Groove rifling, because these calibres are generally used with jacketed bullets.

Ruger has now begun limited production of Marlin lever-guns under its ownership, and so far only of the Model 1895 in .45-70 with standard six-groove barrels. It’s not yet clear whether they’ll use Micro-Groove rifling future production.

On the subject of accuracy: back in the 1960s Marlin claimed a Micro-Groove barrel was 25% more accurate one with than conventional rifling. True or false? Search me! I’ve never noticed any difference when shooting lever-guns with either type of rifling.

Great answer, and thanks for the perspective and information.  I didn’t know that.

I was talking to an FFL a few days ago about Marlin’s production line, and he said that word on the street is that the 30-30 won’t be the next rifle they produce.  I forgot which one he told me was next, but I hope it’s the .35 Remington.  I don’t think it was.  Of course, there are still Marlin 336s in .35 Remington to be had, but the ones in excellent condition are going for > $1500.

If any FFLs out there are reading and have access to more information on what Marlin (Ruger) is producing next in line, let us know in the comments.

I’d like to have one.  On a final note, I’ve never seen 30-30 ammunition that was unjacketed, so his answer makes good sense.

There are a number of things to digest here.  First, this video explains the background.

Second, this video is the perspective of GOA when they submitted the brief to the court.

Third, this is the result.

BREAKING: The U.S District Court for the District of North Dakota Eastern Division has denied GOA and GOF's request for a preliminary injunction against the ATF's Frame & Receiver Rule. pic.twitter.com/cdVpfqTI4y

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) August 23, 2022

Another tyrant in a black robe, coupled with tyrants inside the beltway, all of whom should be fired and the agency disbanded.

Fourth, this is another follow-on from the rule, said rulemaking which should never have been done, and which should have gone through the comment period.

This ATF rule makes it so EVERY SINGLE firearm transaction record (Form 4473) will eventually end up in a digital searchable database, rather than be destroyed after 20 years. But somehow, THAT isn't a violation of the prohibition on creating a gun registry!? ‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/ADNoHXa5R0

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) August 23, 2022

Take it all under advisement, dear readers.  Hope, work and pray for the best, prepare for the worst.  They have made it clear that they don’t care about the law, and they don’t even care anymore that you know that they don’t care.  ATF agents should be mighty proud tonight.  How can they look themselves in the mirror and answer questions from their children about their work without holding their heads down in shame?

Your firearms are your birthright as an American, and the underlying moral code which justifies it comes from the Almighty.

Source.

Four Walmart customers were injured on Sunday afternoon in a mishap involving the mishandling of a handgun.

The incident took place at a Walmart location in Lovejoy, Georgia, at around 12:20 p.m. According to Sergeant Akeem Turnbull with the Lovejoy Police Department, a patron at the store, 29-year-old Michael Walton, was carrying a handgun in an unsafe manner, causing it to slip and go off.

“The gun was in his waistband not holstered and loaded,” Turnbull explained to local news station WSB-TV. “The gun slipped down his leg, he attempted to grab it, and was somehow manipulating the weapon and discharged the firearm.”

Four at one time.  My goodness!

Don’t do that.  Bob Owens was quick to point out that if your gun drops, don’t try to catch it.

Unless of course you’re carrying a 1911 with a legitimate safety.

Firearm retention is more than just about making sure undesirables don’t snatch your weapon.  It’s also about making sure you don’t lose it yourself.

NEW: For the first time, we witnessed the TX National Guard close & lock a gate on private property at a major crossing area in Eagle Pass, denying entry to migrants who just crossed illegally & expected to be let in. Border Patrol then came w/ a key & let them in for processing. pic.twitter.com/S1fZaTJnEi

— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) August 17, 2022

This is easy.  The governor of Texas could handle this with the stroke of a pen.

Issue arming orders to the Texas National Guard.  Tell them to monitor the passing.  If the Border Patrol follows orders from above and comes to open the passing, arrest them and put them into indefinite confinement along with arrested or detained migrants.

The same lack of will has occurred in Missouri where they actually have the tools to do their job but won’t use them.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has so far randomly audited 24 sheriff’s offices in Missouri in search of concealed carry weapon (CCW) details, but they all refused to comply, according to law enforcement authorities.

“None released anything pertaining to CCWs themselves, but some did partially comply by answering procedural questions on issuing CCWs,” said Moniteau County’s Sheriff Tony Wheatley.

Don’t do that.  Confiscate their weapons and seize their credentials, arrest them on the spot, and either take them to the state border and release them or throw them into jail.  Tell them never to come back.

This will get worse until the states stand up for themselves.

Source.

The World Economic Forum is trying to set guardrails for the future of augmented reality, and microchipping people is part of its vision for a “brave new world.”

“Are we moving towards a ‘brave new world’? As scary as chip implants may sound, they form part of a natural evolution that wearables once underwent. Hearing aids or glasses no longer carry a stigma. They are accessories and are even considered a fashion item,” reads the Aug. 16 blog post written by Kathleen Philips, vice president of research and development at the Belgium-based Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre. “Likewise, implants will evolve into a commodity.”

Philips also claimed there were “solid, rational reasons” – “like safety” and “security” – for implanting “your child” with a tracking chip. Yikes!

Alarmingly, implants apparently aim to mechanize certain aspects of human physical function, as exemplified by the slogan of Neuralink – described as a “brain-machine” interface to connect “humans and computers.” Sounds like dystopian technology coming straight out of Ghost in the Shell (2017).

Creepy transhumanism.

Sadly, some young parents, mainly trained in schools of communist ideology (i.e., most colleges these days), will trot their children out to receive the chip.

But this should all be seen as warfare on humans.

We’ve got some big, bad boys back East too.  Be careful in the bush.  Carry a large bore gun with you when you venture out.  I take it the only thing that stopped this fight was the fact that they were too winded to carry on.

Dean Weingarten.  Dean cites Bruen.

Respondents next direct the Court to the history of the Colonies and early Republic, but they identify only three restrictions on public carry from that time. While the Court doubts that just three colonial regulations could suffice to show a tradition of public-carry regulation, even looking at these laws on their own terms, the Court is not convinced that they regulated public carry akin to the New York law at issue. The statutes essentially prohibited bearing arms in a way that spread “fear” or “terror” among the people, including by carrying of “dangerous and unusual weapons.” See 554 U. S., at 627. Whatever the likelihood that handguns were considered “dangerous and unusual” during the colonial period, they are today “the quintessential self-defense weapon.” Id., at 629. Thus, these colonial laws provide no justification for laws restricting the public carry of weapons that are unquestionably in common use today. Pp. 37–42.

He goes on in citing Bruen to note that it didn’t take tyrants long to begin to press their tyranny.

In the early to mid-19th century, some States began enacting laws that proscribed the concealed carry of pistols and other small weapons.

This is yet another great commentary by Dean.  He concludes with this.

Thousands of gun laws across the United States have destroyed hundreds of thousands of lives and done untold economic damage. They were passed with lies and false promises. It is time to repeal most of them.

Yes, laws against barrel length, gun features, ownership stipulations, capacity, rate of fire, and on and on the circus goes.  I wouldn’t have stopped with the need for most of them being repealed.  I would have said all of them.

The exception would be manufacturer liability for bad products and poor engineering.  If a manufacturer fabricates and markets a firearm that harms the user because of poor craftsmanship or failure to follow SAAMI specifications, I believe they should be held accountable, both legally and financially.  I think this is in line with what I’ll call Christian libertarianism.

Outside of this single law, I’m at a loss to find another one with which I agree or believe should be kept.

H/T: Fred.

Source.

President Jair Bolsonaro has called on millions of Brazilians to arm themselves as soon as possible to fight against the tyrannical elites who want to enslave them. “Everyone should buy a gun, damn it! Armed people will never be enslaved,” Bolsonaro told a crowd of supporters outside his official residence, the Alvorada Palace, on Friday, Newspunch.com reports.

He acknowledged that guns “cost a lot,” but urged gun opponents to stop nagging people who are willing and able to pay to buy them, writes Rt.com.

During his campaign for office, Bolsonaro vowed to relax Brazil’s gun laws so citizens could protect themselves from the country’s rampant crime and violence. And he has kept that promise, issuing nearly a dozen decrees making firearms, including semi-automatic assault rifles, more readily available to the public. However, some of them were amended by the National Congress.

The president’s latest initiative in February allowed Brazilian citizens to possess up to six guns and removed the federal police and military from overseeing firearms possession. Those who have a hunting license can now buy 30 rifles, while marksmen can have up to 60. According to data obtained by law enforcement newspaper O Globo, the number of privately owned firearms in the country has risen from about 700,000 to more than 1.2 million since 2018.

I only agree that armed people will never be enslaved assuming the will to use them.

A man who doesn’t believe in slavery of his people wants them armed in order to defend against tyrannical elites.  Meanwhile, the elites in America are trying everything possible to disarm the public.

You see where this is going.

Source.

Across the United States, the deer population has ballooned in recent years to an estimated 30 million. Once a rare sight, deer have become something of a pest, spreading disease and causing fatal car accidents at an increasing rate. But for people like Arnow, who has a background in environmental science, the biggest issue is the impact of too many deer on the forest. With fewer bears and mountain lions around to keep their numbers in check, deer can reproduce with abandon and decimate the young trees and native plants that live beneath forest canopies.

“[If] we have a beautiful overstory of mature oak trees [but] zero oak saplings in the woods, there’s no future for the forest,” said Arnow, whose concern has turned into an obsession with herd management.

To protect these crucial habitats and carbon sinks in order to help keep climate change from spiraling further out of control, scientists say deer population density in much of the country must be drastically reduced. “For this thing to work, you have to drive the deer numbers down to a very low level,” said William McShea, a wildlife ecologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Ecology Center. “You can’t just have casual hunting.”

I don’t know if I agree with the superlative “very low level.”  But the point is that the proliferation of hunting regulations on bag limits, allowable antlered and antlerless take, time, season duration, etc., etc., has overdone it.

I agree with that.  It’s time to pull back on the overbearing regulations.